At NCAA Wrestling, They're Betting on Who Finishes 2nd to Penn State

Penn State is such a huge favorite to win the 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships that one oddsmaker doesn't even include the team in its odds. You can bet on who finishes second to Penn State but not on the Nittany Lions to win.

At DraftKings, there's currently no option to bet on Penn State for the NCAA Wrestling Championships. Instead, there's a "Winner Without Penn State" betting option that includes the teams most likely to finish as the tournament's runnerup (or upset winner). The "favorite" is Ohio State at -120, followed by Oklahoma State (+105) and Nebraska (+800).

DraftKings also lists odds for top-3 and top-5 finishes but nothing for Penn State. It's yet another indication that the Nittany Lions should capture their fifth straight team title at the NCAA Wrestling Championships.

And for good reason. Penn State enters NCAAs with seven wrestlers seeded No. 1 at their weight classes. All seven top seeds won individual titles at the Big Ten Wrestling Championships, where Penn State set multiple school records for points and titles.

Penn State qualified its entire lineup to NCAAs and has eight wrestlers seeded among the top three at their weight classes. Six Nittany Lions are undefeated, including Mitchell Mesenbrink (165 pounds) and Josh Barr (197) who have scored bonus points in every match they wrestled this season.

DraftKings is also once again doing the "NCAA Winner without Penn State included" line. pic.twitter.com/CXsjEFJwkW
— Justin Basch (@JustinJBasch) March 14, 2026

Penn State seeks to break its NCAA Tournament scoring record for the second consecutive year and also set the NCAA record for individual champions. Three programs (Penn State, Iowa and Oklahoma State) have won five titles at a single NCAA Tournament; Penn State and Iowa have done it twice.

The Nittany Lions enter NCAAs following the most statistically dominant regular season of their recent five-year run. Penn State went 15-0 (8-0 in the Big Ten) and shut out eight opponents. The Nittany Lions outscored their sheduled 630-39 and won 92.7 percent of their bouts in dual matches.

Penn State's starting lineup went 139-11 during the regular season and 74-6 against the Big Ten. Seven wrestlers finished the regular season undefeated, and another had one loss. Those eight wrestlers went a combined 140-1 during the dual-meet season, in which Penn State's average margin of victory was 39.4 points.

Penn State coach Cael Sanderson, in addition to building a sports nutrition cookie business, is pursuing his 13th NCAA team title in 17 years as the Nittany Lions' head coach.

"I don’t know how to really compare teams, but this is a really good team," Sanderson said after the Big Ten Tournament. "Just the character and determination, everything is outstanding. We won a lot of tough matches and close matches. It’s these guys making that decision to believe in themselves and do what they do and do it consistently like they have all year long. We’re happy and definitely grateful to have a good weekend like this."

Penn State Nittany Lions wrestling coach Cael Sanderson claps during a 184-pound bout at the Big Ten Wrestling Championships. — Penn State Nittany Lions wrestling coach Cael Sanderson reacts during a 184-pound bout of the Big Ten Wrestling Championships at Bryce Jordan Center. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

The 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships are scheduled for March 19-21 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland. Thirty-three wrestlers in 10 weight classes will compete to finish among the top-8 and earn All-America status.

Wrestling begins at noon ET Thursday with the preliminaries and first round. The quarterfinals are scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday, with the championship matches set for 6:30 p.m. Saturday. ESPN will carry the finals live.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

Sign up to our free Penn State Nittany Lions newsletter and follow us on social media.